The Force Of Reason

This work is the follow-up to "The Rage and The Pride," the author's post-9/11 manifesto. She takes aim at the many attacks and death threats she received after the publication of her political views.

The Force of Reason and the Logic of Force investigates the concept of force through various 'episodes' in the history of philosophy. The author argues that force arises on the basis of the distinction of reality and mere appearance. The book looks at figures who reduce force to something other than itself as well as figures who develop a 'logic of force' that allows them to trace the operation of force without such a reduction.

Faith, Force, and Reason follows the evolution of the rule of law from its birth in the marshes of Mesopotamia over 4,000 years ago to its battle against apartheid in South Africa in the last twenty-five years. It is recounted through the voices of emperors and kings, judges and jurists, and popes and philosophers who have thought about what the rule of law is all about and how it works. All of law’s most momentous achievements – Justinian’s Corpus Juris Civilis, the Magna Carta, and the American Bill of Rights – and most celebrated advocates – Plato and Aristotle, Cicero, Aquinas, Edward Coke, Hugo Grotius, and John Marshall – are featured. So are law’s darkest moments: the trial of Socrates, the burning and beheading of witches and heretics, the persecution of Jews, and the proclamation of Lex Regia which legalized the dictatorial powers of Roman emperors and medieval kings. Faith, Force, and Reason challenges readers to think about the lessons of the history they have read. What does the rule of law mean in our own time? What does it demand of us as well as our political leaders?

As a veteran war correspondent, Chris Hedges has survived ambushes in Central America, imprisonment in Sudan, and a beating by Saudi military police. He has seen children murdered for sport in Gaza and petty thugs elevated into war heroes in the Balkans. Hedges, who is also a former divinity student, has seen war at its worst and knows too well that to those who pass through it, war can be exhilarating and even addictive: “It gives us purpose, meaning, a reason for living.” Drawing on his own experience and on the literature of combat from Homer to Michael Herr, Hedges shows how war seduces not just those on the front lines but entire societies—corrupting politics, destroying culture, and perverting basic human desires. Mixing hard-nosed realism with profound moral and philosophical insight, War Is a Force that Gives Us Meaning is a work of terrible power and redemptive clarity whose truths have never been more necessary.

This work by a noted physicist traces conceptual development from ancient to modern times. Kepler's initiation, Newton's definition, subsequent reinterpretation — contrasting concepts of Leibniz, Boscovich, Kant with those of Mach, Kirchhoff, Hertz. "An excellent presentation." — Science.

In his bestselling The Soul's Code, James Hillman restored passion and meaning to the concept of identity, arguing that each of us is born with an innate character, the "daimon" or "spirit" that calls us to what we are meant to be. Now, in The Force of Character, Hillman brings the idea of character full circle, offering a revolutionary new vision of life's most feared and misunderstood chapter: old age. "Aging is no accident," Hillman writes. "It is necessary to the human condition, intended by the soul." We become more characteristic of who we are simply by lasting into later years; the older we become, the more our true natures emerge. Thus the final years have a very important purpose: the fulfillment and confirmation of one's character. Contrary to the current genetic determinism that sees increased longevity as a wasted aberrance created by civilization, The Force of Character presents an explosive new thesis: The changes of old age, even the debilitating ones, have purposes and values organized by the psyche. Memory for recent events may falter, offering more place for long-term recollections. A heart condition in later life brings an opportunity to remove blockages from constricted relationships, while changes in sleep patterns allow the old to experience the profound elements of nighttime that we usually overlook. As Hillman says, "Aging makes metaphors of biology." In this empowering and original work, James Hillman resurrects the ancient, widespread, and socially effective idea of the old person as "ancestor," a model for the young, the bearer of a society's cultural memory and traditions. America disregards old people who aren't young-acting and young-looking. We don't realize that "oldness" is an archetypal state of being that can add value and luster to things we treasure, places we revere, and people's character. When we open our imaginations to the idea of the ancestor, aging can free us from convention and transform us into a force of nature, releasing our deepest beliefs for the benefit of society. For all who read it, The Force of Character will be a seminal, life-affirming experience.

Faced with the ceaseless stream of news about war, crime, and terrorism, one could easily think this is the most violent age ever seen. Yet as bestselling author Pinker shows in this startling and engaging new work, just the opposite is true.